Take Me Or Leave Me
by Riv
Summary: Femslash. EmmaShalimar. As trouble begins to create her present, Shalimar has to face up to her past.
1. Insomnia

I've redone this chapter because I wasn't happy with the way it had turned out. If you have any suggestions for improvements then they're extremely welcome. 

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**Take Me Or Leave Me**

The peace of the Sanctuary was unnerving, it made Emma uneasy to lie there in the dark and think so deeply of things she never even considered in the day. She couldn't stop her mind spinning through all kinds of emotions, she couldn't stop other people's emotions trickle into her thoughts and disturb her sleep. She turned and tried to force herself into sleep, no good, it wasn't working, nothing worked anymore. All she could think about was what was happening around her every single day....and feel totally helpless. She sat up and left her room, walking around for a while might help, or at the very least exhaust her into sleep. She slowly walked the corridors, being extra careful as she passed Brennan, Jesse and Shal's rooms. She didn't want any of them to wake and see her like this, sometimes the way she acted even freaked her out. She reached the main room and froze when she realized Shalimar was awake. 

"Hey, Emma. Couldn't sleep either huh?", Shal asked, getting to her feet. Emma nodded and raised an eyebrow in question at Shal. Shal shrugged and reached for her bottle of drink which Emma noted, in amusement, was a high caffeine drink, the type that made all the little kids hyper for hours on end. However she pushed the image of a hyper Shal from her mind and shot her friend a curious look again, Shal rolled her eyes, 

"I'm in heat", Shal replied simply, Emma mentally kicked herself, of course how could she forget? Shal jumped up to sit on the table in the centre of the room and drew invisible patterns on the top with her index finger. Emma watched the feral, her eyes gently sweeping over the other mutants soft curves and up over the smooth skin of her neck. 

"What's up?", Shal asked suddenly, shaking Emma out of the daze she had fallen into. Emma tried to think of a half decent lie to fool Shal, but as the other mutant could pretty much guess whenever she was lying that probably wouldn't be a very effective idea. 

"You're not thinking of lying to me are you?", Shal asked, a sing song lilt to her voice, "Naughty, naughty Emma". 

"I thought I was the psionic around here", Emma smirked, answering Shal's question. Shal laughed softly before sliding off the table and approaching Emma. Emma felt her emotions hit hyper drive and her body suddenly felt like jelly. She raised her eyes to meet Shal's and a torrent of emotions passed between them before Shal smiled slightly and lifted a hand to gently touch the tip of Emma's nose. 

"Time for you to get to bed", she said softly, before leaving Emma in the room on her own, more than slightly confused at Shal's actions. She shook of her concerns before returning to her own room and struggling once again with sleep as images of Shalimar flew into her head over and over, tormenting her like a child tormented by a dark storm of the night. 


	2. The Past

Thanks for reviewing ChEsTeRz, I know the first chapter was short but this one will be longer, I promise! 

**Take Me Or Leave Me**

****"Brennan! On your left!", Emma shouted as she dodged a punch thrown by one of the security guards, she spun and landed a backhand fist into his face, knocking him out. Behind her she heard Jesse shout a warning to Shal. Emma turned and watched in awe as Shal back flipped and kicked the guard behind her in the head, spinning, kicking another one before jumping up and snap kicking the final one in the guard. 

"Nice work Shal", Jesse commented, he became rock solid and the guard who had been charging at him collapsed into an unconscious heap on the floor, "is that all of them?". Brennan nodded and set off running up the stairs, they had 8 minutes to get in and out with the coding system they needed to hack into Genomex's computer database. 

"We'll check upstairs, you guys take this floor, if you find something contact us", Jesse ordered before running off after Brennan. Shal dropped out of feral mode and started to walk down the corridor, Emma hesitated before running after her. 

"What if the recent killings have nothing to do with Genomex? What if there's someone new in the area?", she asked. 

"Then no doubt Genomex will already be trying to become buddy buddy with them, therefore it's a win/win situation for us isn't it?", Shal smirked, kicking in the first door they came across and stepping inside. They soon turned the room upside down and there was no sign of the documents. They went back to the door when they heard a gun shot from upstairs, panic flooded their veins as they thought of Brennan and Jesse. Emma made a move to run from the room but was restrained by Shal. 

"No use Emma", she whispered, "we gotta go.....now!". Emma could barely believe her ears and only moved when Shal grabbed her by the hand and dragged her to the window. Shal levered it open and they dropped out onto the grass below. 

"There they are!", a shout echoed over their heads and they took off running at a speed Emma had never known she could reach, they dodged through the carpark until they reached Shal's motorbike. They both hopped on before the guards reached them and sped off. All kinds of emotions were running through Emma's head as they raced of towards the Sanctuary, why had Shal just left the guys behind, did she know something the rest of them didn't? Her mind was distracted as the Sanctuary came into view. The entire area was engulfed in flames, spreading across everything, even the rocks of the mountains, like an unstoppable plague. It's red and orange flickering blanket flew high up in the sky, sending out a warning like a signal. A warning that said: _'We're gonna get you next'_. 

"Oh my God", Shal whispered, it was only then that Emma realized that she had stopped the engine and they were in the middle of the road, gazing at the destruction ahead of them. 

"Adam....", Emma whispered, finally finding her voice, "did you know about this?". Shal hung her head before turning to look at Emma. 

"I'll explain later, I promise", Shal mumbled, "for now, we have to get out of here". With that she started up the engine again and set the bike back into motion across the road, soon she turned quickly and carried on off road. She definitely knew something they didn't. 

After about 15 minutes of driving Shal stopped the engine and got off. Emma followed her. 

"Explain it to me, what the hell happened? What do you know?", Emma demanded, more worried for her friend's safety than angry at Shal. Shal slowly paced before raising her eyes to meet Emma's and speaking. 

"I had a friend in school, my best friend, a normal girl who knew I was a mutant and accepted it", she started, "We were practically inseparable and everyone knew that", she stopped and took a deep breath before continuing, "Her parents found out I was a mutant and banned us from seeing each other, they forced her to hand around with this scumbag called Harvey, he's deeply mentally disturbed. They eventually started dating, I think she was forced into that as well, and Harvey initiated her into his 'team'. That's when I first found out about it". There was a long silence.  
"Found out about what?", Emma prompted gently, Shal shook herself and spoke up again, 

"The 'team' it was like a group for people who want to eliminate mutants from the Earth via force. They were fanatics who got thrills off of beating up mutants, I saw them beat one kid up in our school who just happened to look vaguely similar to a 'mutant' they'd seen on television", Shal stopped again, as if trying to recall the events, "Anyway, my friend basically refused to go along with the group, she knew they were going to go straight for me. So she got me to hide her, I got her a new identity and everything" 

"And Harvey found out?", Emma asked. Shal nodded. 

"And he's not happy, he swore he'd get back at me for taking away 'the love of his life', I guess this would count as the beginning of my payback", she explained, "He'll have taken Brennan, Jesse and Adam and locked them up. He won't have killed them, he can't use them as bait if they're dead". Emma felt her blood run cold. 

"So we're going to walk straight into his trap?", she asked softly. Shal shook her head. 

"Not us,......me", she replied. 


	3. Don't Follow Me

Thanks to everyone who reviewed, you know who you are and you're all wonderful! 

**Take Me Or Leave Me**

Emma stared at her friend in disbelief as Shal tried to look anywhere but at Emma. Emma felt confusion and anger flood her body, why was Shal being like this? 

"You honestly expect me to sit back and do nothing while you go off and possibly get yourself killed?", she demanded, grabbing Shal's arm and shaking her. Shal went to pull back but decided against it and mumbled something incoherent. 

"Speak up will you", Emma snapped, letting go of Shal's arm and crossing her arms in front of her chest in a show of defiance. Shal sighed and explained, 

"I don't want to see you get hurt", Emma rolled her eyes and nearly laughed when she realized Shal had looked up and the expression on her face wasn't far off of confused. 

"I won't get hurt, I'm all grown up Shal, I can look after myself...and if someone does start someone I'm sure you'll be there to protect me", Emma smiled, hoping to change Shal's mind via joking. Shal shook her head and began to pace, trying to sort out her thoughts. 

"It's not that, Harvey can do things to people, he can change them. I don't want him anywhere near you", Shal tried to explain, but not doing a particularly good job of it. She sighed and ran her hand through her hair, trying to figure out how to make it easier for Emma to understand why she was being so protective. 

"Look, he isn't going to change me. If you're worried he'll turn me against you then don't because that's never going to happen, I promise", Emma replied. Shal shook her head again, her eyes displaying her fear that she was striving to hide beneath her voice. 

"You can't promise with him, he's changed so many people", Shal said, her voice becoming somewhat desperate. Emma crossed the distance between them and gently raised one hand to caress Shal's cheek, making the feral tremble beneath her soft touch. 

"Why are you so scared now Shal?", Emma asked, lifting another hand to gently stroke Shal's neck, thinking that the reason Shal closed her eyes so quickly was through her fears and not through Shal's real, pure emotion. Shal bit her bottom lip and breathed out shakily, willing herself not to open her eyes and look Emma in the eye. She tried to envision anything but the beautiful woman she had grown to love with all of her heart but failed miserably as they hit her more frequently. 

"I can't let you get hurt", Shal whispered, lowering her head so that Emma's hold on her was released and she could breathe again. Emma stepped in and wrapped her arms around Shal's waist, shocking the mutant into looking up and creating a link between their eyes and heart again. Shal nervously licked her lips and let her eyes roam to Emma's soft lips, wishing that she could lean in and capture them with her own lips. 

"Shal, I'm not going to get hurt, how many times am I going to have to tell you?", Emma whispered, subconsciously running her thumb over Shal's bottom lip and sending pulse of desire through the feral's already trembling body, "I want to help you and I can't do that if you won't let me". Shal shook her head viciously, angry at herself for the emotions she couldn't control and angry at Emma for not realising the way her emotions were all over the place because of how she was acting, wasn't she able to read emotions? Why couldn't she feel Shal's now? Surely they must be flashing like a beacon, available for all to see. 

"Shal...what's wrong?", Emma whispered, her eyes searching Shal's face for any hints, her face showing her conflicting feelings on whether to use her powers or not. Shal ducked her head slightly, struggling to find her voice. 

"Don't use them", she whispered suddenly, with a voice that didn't seem like her own, "I'll show you what's wrong". And before Emma could reply Shal, moved in and her lips met Emma's in a soft and gentle kiss that shocked both girls for the few seconds that it lasted. Shal pulled back, making Emma gasp as a cold air hit them both with the seperation. 

"Emma...don't follow me", Shal whispered before turning and walking back towards her motorbike, leaving Emma shocked and confused behind her. 

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Well 3rd chapter, perhaps not so good but I may remodel it so if you have any suggestions feel free to make them. Ciao peoples! 


	4. Danger Arises

Sorry for la delay in updating but my computer crashed and I lost a lot of my work so had to start again. Anyway thanks for the reviews peoples, luv ya all! ;) 

**Take Me or Leave Me**

Emma felt her knees shake as she stood their, heart pounding in her chest from desire, confusion and panic at the events that were unfolding. Her hand slowly lifted to her lips where she gently touched the electricity that Shal had left dancing upon their smooth, pink surfaces. Her hand began to shake and she lowered it back to her side, only then did she realize that Shal hadn't left yet. She tried to call out to her but her voice was held in a whirlwind of emotion that had taken control of her entire body. The motorbike started up and sped off, away from Emma, before she had a chance to decide what to do. 

"Great.....", she whispered helplessly to herself, still trying to comprehend what had happened, her heart was screaming out for Shalimar, her head told her it hadn't happened, that it had been some kind of day dream on Emma's behalf. She took a few steps forward, stumbling like a blind man who had lost his way, she gazed down the road back towards the town, a tiny image of Shal's motorbike moving ever further away. 

"How the fuck do I get back?", Emma demanded outloud suddenly, not sure why she had suddenly said that. She wrapped her arms around herself and sighed, shivering from emotions that tickled her skin ever so gently. 

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Shal's mind was spinning, tumbling around like a tornado within her head, throwing emotions back and forth, ideas bouncing around like springs. Her hands clenched angrily around the handles of her bike and she felt her feral instincts start to flare up inside as the implications of what she had did began to emerge inside her. Her eyes began to flash yellow and she quickly shook her head, trying to force her feelings back inside, at least until she'd found her friends. 

It was only then that she realized Harvey's obsession with her had led him to kidnap, torture and maybe even attempt to kill the closest friends she had ever had. Anger shook her body and suddenly anger, hurt, confusion and desperation burst through her body. 

In that instance Shal lost control of her bike and it swerved uncontrollable , she tumbled off of it, smashing her head off of the floor but escaping with her life as the bike collided into a nearby tree and exploded into a ball of flames. Embers spat out, setting light to her clothes, she rolled over and crawled backwards, head spinning uncontrollably. She felt darkness start to creep across her eyes and she shook her head, trying to clear her vision but regretting her actions as soon as nausea began to shake her body. 

"Oh god....", she mumbled, shaking uncontrollably as her body began to slowly go deathly cold despite the heat of the day, she closed her eyes and tried to sort out her thoughts, tried to force her body into moving but failing miserably. She felt sleep start to take over her body and she let it take control as she gave in to the sudden exhaustion. 

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Emma slowly walked along the road, having quickly deduced that walking was the only way she was going to get home anytime soon. Her heart and her head were still in conflict over what had happened. Since when had Shalimar liked her? Since when had Shalimar been gay? Since when had a spark lit up inside Emma whenever she thought of her blonde friend? Emma froze at that thought, not sure where it had come from but uncertain if she had meant it. She quickly shook her head and began to walk faster, as if it would somehow help ease her troubled mind from the thoughts which were trying to take control. At that moment there was a loud explosion, Emma jumped into battle stance instinctively and looked around abruptly. Her heart choked when she saw the flames rising from a tree further down the road and there was no longer the glimpse of a motor bike in front of her. Adrenaline suddenly took hold as Emma began to run, no longer in control of her own movements. 

After running for what seemed like forever Emma was close enough to see a young blonde woman lying on the floor, not moving. Her speed doubled as she closed in on the unconscious form and she stumbled to her knees beside her friend, tears threatening to spill out. 

"Shal!", she called shakily, tears beginning to trickle down her cheeks. She struggled with the urge to shake Shal, knowing that it would do more harm than good but not sure what else to do. She began to search for damage, tears blurring her vision badly and quiet sobs keeping her from talking to Shal. Finding no obvious damage Emma gently caressed Shal's face, fingers running lightly over Shal's smooth skin almost as th9ough she were in awe of her beauty. 

"Shal...I love you...you can't leave me...I need you here with me", she whispered, the words tumbling out like a waterfall as she murmured Shalimar's name over and over, not fully in control of her speech. Emma felt something crack across the back of her head and she crumpled forward onto Shalimar, vaguely catching the sound of a voice before she descended into a world of black. 

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La new chapter. Read and review people! .


	5. Beaten

Sense of deja vu here computer needed reformatting **again**!!! Ah well, I'll get over it. Thanks for all the reviews people you guys are amazing! 

Oh yeah...the rating increase is because of the inclusion of some physical and sexual abuse in this chapter, nothing too drastic but it needs a warning. 

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**Take Me Or Leave Me**

****Slowly her consciousness took hold of her again and Emma opened her eyes, still groggy from the crack on her head she'd received. Carefully lifting one hand to touch the back of her head she found a bump slowly forming, she winced as she touched it before cursing quietly and trying to stand up. She soon tumbled back to the floor and, after recovering from the pain, quickly decided that hadn't been the best idea she'd ever had. 

"Idiot", she muttered to herself, deciding to content herself with regarding the room she was in from her seated position on the floor, it was dimly lit by a source Emma couldn't determine and with the exception of an odd looking piece of equipment in the centre of the room there was little else, a few blankets but nothing of any interest. With no intentions of touching the odd device Emma leant back against the wall and decided to distract herself by trying to piece together the events of the last day...or the events of the day she'd been knocked out at any rate. 

"Where's Shal?", Emma mused, moving her head slowly to look around, checking if she hadn't missed her friend, not sure how she would have managed that if she had. As it turned out Shal wasn't in the room. Emma suddenly froze and strained her ears as the sound of voices came towards her, laughing and joking as they pounded down the hallway. A key was pushed roughly into the lock and the door flung open, a battered Shalimar was thrown onto the floor and the door slammed shut as the men walked off, still talking casually as if nothing had happened. Ignoring the horrendous pain Emma stumbled over to Shalimar and gently checked her vital signs, trying to submerge her emotions for the sake of logic and common sense. 

"Emma?", a soft, distant voice whispered, Emma glanced down to find Shalimar's eyes open, barely due to the bruising and swelling which was keeping them almost shut. Emma felt her heart begin to break as tears slowly reached her eyes whilst she regarded her friend, so fragile. She lifted one hand and gently caressed Shalimar's cheek. 

"It's me", Emma whispered, her voice catching, Shalimar tried to smile but ended up flinching instead. 

"Good", she murmured, "At least they didn't get you...the scum kept their promise". Emma felt terror grip her body and she choked slightly before lying beside Shalimar and gently putting one hand on her stomach, ever so gently in case anything was broken. Her body had filled with an uncontrollable feeling of dread and yet she didn't want to question why that existed. She just lay next to Shalimar and prayed the feelings disappear. Soon she felt her body fall back into sleep and her mind followed soon after, followed by the emotionally exhausted Shalimar. 

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_"You'd willing suffer just to prevent us touching your precious little friend?", Harvey laughed, crouching in front of Shalimar and cocking his head on one side. Shalimar lifted her defiantly and nodded.  
"Of course", she replied softly. Harvey laughed a cold and empty laugh before standing up._

_"I didn't expect anything less from you Shal", he smirked before his face dissolved into an ugly, twisted sneer and he stepped forward to deliver and violent kick to Shalimar's stomach. She grunted in pain but managed to lift her head again, determined not to crumble from a single blow._

_"Have fun guys", Harvey smirked before turning his back on Shalimar and leaving the room. Out of the shadows stepped 3 young men, brandishing an assortment of weapons and each with a substancial bulge in their pants. Shalimar realized in horror what Harvey meant but still kept her mouth shut, reminding herself this was for Emma. _

_"Come on then bitch...prepare yourself for real men", one snarled as he brought his fist down in a shattering blow to Shalimar's face before pinning her down and grabbing hold of her breasts with both hands. Shalimar moved to kick him off but found her legs pinned down by one of the other men. The man on top her laughed and smashed his fist into her ribs once...twice...before grabbing at her clothes and ripping them off of her. The third man stepped in and delivered a kick to her face before concentrating his attention on her ribs kicking them at least 5 times as her clothes were hurriedly ripped off. The man jumped up and lowered his trousers and pants and Shalimar tried to pull back in terror, vulnerable and unable to stop them. He lowered himself onto her and began to thrust, pushing her to the edge despite her desperate attempts not to. _

_._

__Shalimar woke up screaming, waking Emma as she did so, who sat up to check if Shalimar was awake or screaming in her sleep. 

"Shalimar baby...what's wrong?", Shalimar shook her head as the images burst into the foreground tormenting her like demons in the night. Emma gently stroked Shalimar's face, slowly caressing it and trying to calm her friend, not sure what else to do. Shalimar felt the soft touches and turned her head towards them, hoping they would help alleviate the images whilst Emma ran through all the possible scenarios in her head. 

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:( Now I feel mean for doing that to Shal...... 

Anyway I'm grateful for any feedback you can provide, until next time. Byzy byz! 


	6. Challenges

New chapter up people, attempting to get more frequent with my updates 'coz from the 1st of August to the 14th I will be in Greece and unable to update so....anyhoo time to thank reviewers! Don't worry I've decided to do that all of the sudden. 

Thankies to: 

**Caren H, gelf, Darkie, rain, Crimson Cut, Anne, wox-77, Katianna, Ferae (is this a different person to Ferae Naturae or not?), purse, wizard13, shalimar and ****ChEsTeRz**. Your reviews make me very happy wahey! Next chapter. 

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**Take Me or Leave Me**

Emma sat up abruptly as the cell door was thrown open and a tall man with startling blue eyes stepped in. Her surveyed the room with cool precision before grabbing hold of Emma by the throat and lifting her up, causing the sleeping Shalimar to awaken as well. Despite the agony it must have caused her Shalimar jumped to her feet, ready to defend Emma. Emma felt her core tremble as horror reached Shalimar's eyes. The man dropped Emma and delivered a backhand blow to Shalimar's face, sending her sprawling back to the floor. 

"Shal", Emma spoke automatically, moving towards Shalimar, only to find herself knocked to the floor in a similar manner. 

"Harvey....don't fucking touch her", Shalimar growled, getting back to her feet. Emma couldn't help but wonder how she was still standing given the sheer amount of injuries she had been subjected to other the past couple of days. She moved forward just as Harvey was about to lash out again and caught Shalimar by the arm, pulling her back to the floor. 

"How..fucking...sweet...it makes me sick", Harvey spat, he stormed over to the floor and flung it shut, making the entire cell seem to shake from the force, "I hope you two trust each other as much as you love each other". Shalimar got onto her knees and faced Harvey with her usual, heartless and cold manner that she gave to her enemies. 

"What do you want from us?", Shalimar snarled, her eyes beginning to flash yellow as the anger began to take control of her body. Her entire being was reacting to the abuse she'd been subjected to yesterday and was now telling her to fight, and to fight now. 

"I want to see you suffer, I want you to remember the challenges I give you forever...if you survive of course which...to be fair, isn't that likely", Harvey laughed walking over and crouching in front of Shalimar. He reached out and caught hold of her face with one hand, sneering impatiently at her. Within his eyes was such malicious anger it made Emma shudder with fear, how anyone could be become so overcome by rage she would never know. 

"Challenges? What are you going to make us do? Jump through hoops", Shalimar smirked, trying to retain a sense of defiance in the face of this man who could easily destroy her life with a single word. Harvey laughed and gently tapped the side of Shalimar's head. 

"Patience my love...you'll see...the first will be a test of strength...you better prepare yourself", he smirked, "Initiate the countdown boys". With that final order he stood up and left the room, shutting and locking the door behind himself. Emma gently wrapped her arms around Shalimar and buried her head in her friend's shoulder. Shalimar smiled slightly before softly kissing Emma's neck, making Emma tremble with pleasure beneath her soft lips. Emma pulled back slightly and lifted a hand to cup Shalimar's face, not even noticing the bruises which remained from her previous beating. She leant in and softly captured Shalimar's lips with her own, Shalimar gently responded and moved her hands to Emma's waist. Eventually they pulled back and Shalimar leant in so their foreheads touched. 

"Shal...", Emma started, she was cut off by the sound of smashing and both women jumped to their feet in shock, ready to face whatever it was that was thrown at them. 

"Test of strength huh?", Emma commented, "This could be interesting". Shalimar glanced across at Emma and gave her a slightly worried look. 

"Are you all right with this? I mean you've kicked ass before right?", Shalimar replied, Emma nodded and flinched as a another smash resounded in her head. 

"Oh...just one problem", she stated suddenly, "Our mutant abilities have been put 'off-line' somehow". Shalimar frowned and shook her head slowly in reply as another smash echoed, this time practically in front of them. 

"Mine aren't.....oh...great", Shalimar trailed off and cursed angrily under her breathe, "Harvey's prevent the flow of your abilities in order to make you helpless, what's the betting that all of ...whatever we have to fight or whatever it is is based upon you now?". Emma raised one eyebrow and laughed humorlessly. 

"That takes sadism to a new level...he's really trying to get you to break...what a bastard", Emma said, her eyes were pulled back to the wall in front of them as at least 7 soldiers shattered their way through the wall and prepared themselves to attack. 

"I'm going to assume they're not as easy as the other guys we've beaten...watch yourself Em...I'll try to watch out for you", Shalimar promised just before the first 3 soldiers took a run at them. 

.. 

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There we go, don't really have much else to say but one point to make is the reason Shalimar can now stand and, in the next chapter, fight is due to intervention on Harvey's behalf, thought I should explain that quickly. 

Until next time ciao! 


	7. Opened Up

Thanks to everyone who reviewed, made me so happy to see all those reviews when I opened my inbox, by the way thanks for clearing the identity thing up for me Ferae! 

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**Take Me or Leave Me**

****The first three soldiers charged Shalimar, hoping to send her off balance with their coordinated attack, she jumped high in the air over their heads, slightly confused as to how her body had regained it's strength in such a short time but at the same time grateful for it. She landed behind the three and landed a kick in one of their backs, sending him flying into the wall with a vicious crack. The other two spun around and, in sequence, aimed blows at her with their fists. Whilst this was happening one solider ran at Emma, jumping up to snap kick her in the chest, Emma barely dodged as he flew past her and landed easily next to her. She quickly lashed out with a punch to the nose and he fell to his knees as blood splurted out. 

"Bitch", another spat, grabbing her around the neck, she desperately elbowed him but he simply tightened his grasp on her neck, dragging unconsciousness closer to her. Something flew towards her, almost in slow motion and she felt the man's grip upon her loosen all of a sudden, she threw her elbow back and elbowed him in the groin, sending him to the floor in agony. She wasn't sure what Shalimar had thrown but it had certainly been well times. The other 5 guards had been effectively dealt with by Shalimar, but the look on the feral's face was less than happy. She looked slightly anxious and very cautious, as though she were expecting something big and bad to suddenly materialize in front of her. 

"That was too easy", she quietly explained as Emma approached her, "he's playing at something and it's pissing me off that I don't know what". Emma placed one hand on Shalimar's shoulder and gently squeezed it, feeling helpless without her abilities to help her with the situation. 

"Perhaps he underestimated you", Emma suggested, "he hasn't seen you for years now so it's possible right?". Shalimar went to shake her head before shrugging instead. 

"Anything's possible...it just doesn't seem like his style to be is all", Shalimar explained, "he's always been careful to make sure a job gets done, why the sudden ease of challenges?". Emma was at a loss at what to say, after all it wasn't as is she knew this man or anything. 

"All right we'll stay on guard but I'd just..sit down if I were you Shal", Emma suggested, her eyes suddenly noticing a deep cut on Shalimar's arm, "it looks as though one of them got you after all". Shalimar followed Emma's eye line and looked slightly confused as to how the cut had gotten there. 

"None of them were carrying knives....they were all unarmed", Shalimar mused quietly, "So unless one of them needed their nails clipping badly how the hell did I get that?". Emma shrugged but sat Shalimar down anyway so she could apply pressure to the wound. 

"Small knife in the palm of the hand? I doubt these guys were fighting fair Shal...it doesn't seem like their type to be honest...I think you're reading too far into this sweetie", Emma whispered, leaning in and softly engaging in a kiss. Shalimar responded slightly before pulling back as a noise reached her keen ears. 

"Did you hear that?", she whispered, looking around. Emma slowly shook her head and glanced around, the sound of footsteps soon reached her ears, her eyes fixated on the door as Harvey's bulky figure filled it. 

"Well done ladies...but like Shalimar said...it's not over yet", Harvey smirked, "Are you ready for the second part to our physical game?". Shalimar jumped to her feet and quickly put herself between Harvey and Emma. Harvey nodded and clapped his hands twice, lights seemed to appear from nowhere and blind the two women. Emma fell to her knees, clutching her face as her eyes seemed to burn within their sockets, Shalimar desperately struggled to keep an eye on where Harvey was stood but lost him in the brightness was didn't look like it was going anywhere fast. 

"How can you survive when your friend is helpess and you have no eyes Shalimar?", Harvey laughed, his voice filling up the room and echoing around her, preventing her from determining his exact location. Shalimar slowly stepped back until she were at Emma's side, her heart was breaking as she heard Emma whimper with pain, she was fighting off her emotions and keeping her mind focused on the job at hand. She closed her eyes, they were of no use to her now. She listened for a few minutes before realizing that although Harvey was moving, she could sense him, he wasn't making a single sound as he moved. 

"Shit", Shalimar cursed, she took a deep breath and focused her mind, trying to visualize Harvey moving amongst the light. She sensed him moving forwards slowly before speeding up as she ran towards Emma with his arms outstretched. She hurriedly spun around and kicked out, hoping to distract her opponent. She was surprised when her foot conencted with Harvey and he landed heavily on the floor a metre or so away, she ran forward and grabbed hold of his throat, lifting him off the floor. 

"Well done", he whispered before clapping again, Shalimar gasped as all the strength went from her body and, in one motion, she let go of Harvey and crumbled to her knees. 

"Shal", Emma called, tumbling over to kneel beside her friend, she gently caressed Shalimar's face as the other woman struggled to combat unconsciousness, "Stay with me". Harvey laughed suddenly. 

"You better hope she wakes up soon...the next challenge will start within two hours", he commented before leaving Emma to nurse her friend. 

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Yay next chapter. How fun. Anyway it's really late now so sorry for any grammatical mistakes made. Until next time ciao! 


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